Grilled Turkey Tenderloin

Grilled turkey tenderloin & keto marinade (no junk)! Juicy grilled turkey tenderloins every time!

Grilled turkey tenderloin is my new favorite white meat, because it’s more tender than turkey breast, but also more flavorful. You have probably seen the popular store-bought variety of turkey tenderloin, usually packaged exactly like a pork tenderloin and advertising itself as being less fat than a pork tenderloin.

However, have you really looked at the ingredients? Not good at all. Very trashy, in fact. Dextrose, canola or other vegetable oil, autolyzed yeast extract, and even soy and starches are often added to the marinades of these cuts of store bought turkey tenderloin. And even if you rinse the marinade off before cooking, they are very likely already injected into the meat before packaging.

Read more about garbage ingredients and how to avoid them

After searching high and low for a recipe that has the taste of these marinades without all the junk, I think I have come close. I hope you enjoy this as much as I have!

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs turkey tenderloin
1/2 cup extra light olive oil
2-3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (or juice from about one medium lemon)
2 tablespoon Tamari (wheat-free soy sauce) or liquid aminos
2 teaspoons Allulose
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 sprig fresh leaves)
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary (or 1 sprig fresh leaves)
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning (I use a sugar-free kind)

DIRECTIONS

With a whisk, combine the liquids, and stir in the Allulose until dissolved. Add the rest of the ingredients and set aside.

If broiling in your oven’s broiler drawer, you will want to slice the fresh meat into 3 pieces, lengthwise, for even cooking.

Rinse the turkey tenderloins and pat dry, then pour the the marinade over the meat and add the fresh sprigs of herbs, if using.

Let sit the turkey tenderloins marinate in the fridge for 8 hours or up to 48 hours in a plastic bag or covered glass dish.

GRILL

Heat grill to 400F and oil the grill grates. Remove turkey tenderloins from marinade (discard marinade) and shake off excess liquid. Place the turkey tenderloins on the grill for 12-15 minutes, flipping over once, for a total cook time of 30-40 minutes or until charred to your likeness on the outside and reaching a temperature of 160 F inside (measuring the thickest part of the meat).

ROAST

Preheat oven to 325F and grease a glass dish or metal pan. Remove turkey tenderloins from marinade (discard marinade) and shake off excess liquid. Place the turkey tenderloins in the oven and then pour a small amount of water or broth around the tenderloins. This is just enough to cover the bottom of the dish and will keep the meat from drying out and the pan from scorching. flipping over once after 45 minutes, for a total bake time of 90 minutes or until done to your likeness on the outside and reaching a temperature of 160 F inside and for the juices to run clear (measuring the thickest part of the meat).

BROIL

If broiling in your oven’s broiler drawer, you will want to slice the fresh meat into 3 pieces, lengthwise, for even cooking.

Lightly oil or line your oven’s broiler pans with foil and place slits along the top rack’s slits. Place the assembled pan into the broiler drawer at the middle position (or 4 inches from the heat source)

Set your oven’s temperature dial to the BROIL setting.

Remove the turkey tenderloins from marinade (discarding marinade) shaking off excess liquid.

Lay the turkey tenderloins on the broiler pan across the slits and broil the meat for 20-24 minutes, flipping over halfway. You want an internal temperature of 160 F and the juices to run clear when pierced with a fork in the middle (usually happens when taking a reading with a meat thermometer).

NOTES

This recipe was for marinating 2 lbs of turkey tenderloin, so you can simply halve all the ingredients for 1 lb of meat, or multiply as needed for cooking larger batches. Also note that if you plug this recipe into MyFitnessPal or similar calorie tracker, you will want to decrease the oil content if you are tracking your fat intake macros. Since the actual amount of marinade used is probably 1/4 in the end product, you won’t need to log 1/2 cup of the oil.

If you don’t have a local source for turkey and want to avoid the pre-marinated store bought junk as previously mentioned, Nature’s Rancher turkey tenderloin is what I purchased because it’s just the plain turkey cuts, nothing added. It is also available at my local Whole Foods as delivered by Amazon.